China has unveiled its latest achievement in the field of supercomputing with the introduction of the "Tianhe Xingyi Supercomputer." The announcement was made by the National Supercomputing Center in Guangzhou at an industry event in Guangdong Province, and was reported by state news agency Xinhua.
The Tianhe Xingyi sets itself apart from its predecessor with its cutting-edge domestically designed architecture. While specific details about its computing power remain unknown, Lu Yutong, the director of the National Supercomputing Center, revealed that the Tianhe Xingyi surpasses the renowned Tianhe-2 in various critical aspects such as CPU computing power, networking efficiency, storage capacity, and application performance.
The Tianhe-2, developed by the National University of Defense Technology, held the title of the world's fastest supercomputer for three consecutive years starting in 2013. However, its reign was disrupted in 2016 when the U.S. government blacklisted the university, limiting access to crucial Intel processors necessary for supercomputing capabilities.
The unveiling of the Tianhe Xingyi is not an isolated event in China's supercomputing landscape. The Sunway TaihuLight, another notable creation by the National Supercomputing Center in Wuxi, secured the seventh position in the global rankings in June 2023, while the Tianhe-2 secured the tenth spot.
The lack of specific details regarding the Tianhe Xingyi's computing power has left the computing community eagerly anticipating further information. Lu Yutong shed some light on the supercomputer's operational expectations, emphasizing its crucial role in meeting the increasing computing demands across various fields, including high-performance computing, artificial intelligence (AI) big model training, and big data analysis.
The design of the Tianhe Xingyi reflects its dedication to addressing evolving challenges in computing, particularly in the realms of AI and big data applications.
China holds a dominant position in the global supercomputing landscape, with its centers collectively possessing a significant share of the world's top 500 supercomputers. As of November 2019, China surpassed the United States with 228 supercomputers among the top 500.
China's journey in supercomputing began in the 1980s and quickly progressed to claim the top spot in November 2010 with the Tianhe-1A. Notably, China's Sunway TaihuLight and Tianhe-2A rank seventh and tenth globally, respectively. In an effort to overcome potential technology embargoes, China has developed its processors, such as the Loongson, signaling a push towards self-sufficiency. However, geopolitical tensions have resulted in some Chinese supercomputing entities facing restrictions on the global stage.
